COVID-19 Update

Workwell Services Update

Workwell Occupational Medicine Clinics continue to operate during business hours 8am-5pm. If you’re experiencing flu-like symptoms and need a worker’s comp initial or follow-up visit, please schedule a WWeCare Telemed appointment by calling your local Workwell Clinic. If you have been exposed to someone with known coronavirus or someone with a suspected case of coronavirus, do not come into the clinic – we are happy to schedule a Telemed visit with you.

Workwell Services Update: May 12, 2020

DORA, the state licensing authority, has given Workwell permission to proceed with Massage and Chiropractic Services. Please schedule your massage and chiropractic visit by calling your clinic. If you are experiencing flu-like symptoms, we would ask you to delay these services until your symptoms have passed.We are screening all patients for symptoms as they enter our clinics. If patients demonstrate any indication of illness, they will be sent away and asked to reschedule.

For other types of care, please consider WWeCare Telemedicine, which is available not only for Work Comp medical visits but also for Physical Therapy.

At this time due to exposure concerns, noPFTs, spirometry or Breath Alcohol Tests (BATS) will be performed.

Respirator FIT testing will be limited to those with a medical/first responder/EMS/fire/police/security type position that is relevant to the pandemic or providing essential services.

Safety and WWeCare Telemedicine

Because patient and staff safety are always a top priority at Workwell, we want to address questions and concerns you may have regarding coronavirus (COVID-19).

As part of our commitment to the health and well-being of our staff, patients, and communities, Workwell is closely monitoring information shared by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Colorado Governor’s Office, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP) at the Department of Labor.

Based on current guidance, Workwell will continue to welcome healthy patients into our clinics, which will operate during normal business hours, and with the limited service offering detailed above.

Workwell clinics have the following health and safety protocols in place:

All patients and visitors to our clinics are asked to wear a face covering of some sort.

Hand sanitizer stations at the entrance to and throughout our clinics.

Front office staff will wear gloves and face masks and will initiate an Illness Detection Protocol before any treatment.

Face masks are available for those patients who do not have their own.

In response to social distancing and continued business closings, we are offering patients the ability to connect to our providers for workers’ compensation-related care via our WWeCare Telemedicine service.

For Employers Needing Evaluation and Care for Employees with COVID-19 Illness, Exposure, or Possible Exposure

Workwell is pleased to be able to offer our WWeCare Telemedicine service specifically for COVID-19 management in the workers’ compensation system.

We want to help employers and patients understand the current process.

Workwell is scheduling all medical visits related to COVID-19 via WWeCare Telemedicine. These visits can be scheduled by patients calling their local Workwell clinic.

Patients will complete a specific questionnaire designed to identify risks of COVID-19 exposure, severity of illness, etc.

Our providers will perform the medical visit via a secured, HIPAA-compliant video link. We will generate our usual forms for workers’ compensation, including a 164 that recommends work status.

We will be following recommendations from CDPHE for evaluation and treatment of ill or exposed persons.

Please be aware that current guidelines do not allow for testing of well persons. Instead, self-quarantine at home is recommended. No testing is available to “clear” these patients prior to 14 days after exposure.

Patients who have a fever and are at risk can be tested for COVID-19 in very limited circumstances. However, Workwell does not provide COVID-19 testing. Our providers will discuss with patients their best options for testing. Please be aware that there are only a few urgent care centers that are doing testing, and the public health labs have a very low ability to perform testing. Private doctor’s offices as of today will typically have only a few days of testing supplies. Private labs such as Quest and Labcorp are only receiving samples; they are not collecting samples. Patients requiring testing will likely require an evaluation by their personal physician, an urgent care, or an emergency department. If the treating provider identifies another source of the illness such as influenza, testing for COVID-19 would not likely happen unless there are unusual circumstances.

Current tests require 4-6 days to receive results – rapid testing is not currently available. Like all other tests, there is the chance of false positive or false negative results. There is also no testing to “clear” an asymptomatic patient to return to work.

Anyone who tests positive but is not ill enough to require hospitalization is currently recommended to stay at home for 10 days after the onset of symptoms. Hospitalized patients should wait 10 days after being discharged before returning to work.

As part of the COVID-19 testing process, patients who are acutely ill and appear to be short of breath would be referred to an emergency department.

If patients are not hospitalized, Workwell providers will follow up with them every 2-3 days to assess their symptoms and stability.

If you have the need for other occupational health services for your business, please contact us.